Hasta La Gadget!

In 14 years, you will be my 18-year-old son. We will have gone through many trials and tribulations together. We will be different people in 14 years. I will be a different mother. You will be a different child; mostly because you won’t be a child at all. You will be a teenager, a young adult, a — gulp — man. I will have no idea how we’ve gotten to that point. I will still watch you nervously as you push the boundaries. I will watch you leave the nest with mixed emotions. I will hope that what I’ve done has been enough.

But I’m sure I won’t be alone. Because I will have other moms beside me… hoping along with me…

1. I hope you’re successful, but not so successful that you’ve breezed through life.
2. I hope you’re smart, but not so smart that you’re bored in class.
3. I hope you’re kind, but not so kind that people walk all over you.
4. I hope you’re handsome, but not so handsome that girls throw themselves at you.
5. I hope you’re a mama’s boy, but not such a mama’s boy that you have no independence.
6. I hope you’re strong, but not so strong that people wonder if you do steroids.
7. I hope you’re patient, but not so patient that you sit back and watch life roll by.
8. I hope you’re passionate, but not so passionate that you marry the first girl you see.
9. I hope you’re balanced, but not so balanced that you become boring.
10. I hope you’re competitive, but not so competitive that you become a sore loser.
11. I hope you’re determined, but not so determined that you will destroy anything in your path.
12. I hope you’re optimistic, but not optimistic that you can’t accept reality.
13. I hope you’re brave, but not so brave that you get yourself into trouble.
14. I hope you’re happy, but… nothing. I just want you to be happy…

Originally appeared on MomShar.com